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Mr. Noyes^s Oration. 



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ORATION, 



DELIVERED IN. BRATTLEBOROUGH. 



JULY 4th— 1811 



>nmo9MMm< 



By John Noyes, Esq. 



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BTt\TTLEBOROUGH I 
PRINTED BY WILLIAM FESSENDEN- 

1811. 



Brattkborough, July 4, 1811. 
SIR, 

There being a general wish for the publication of your 
Oration, delivered this day, the Committee of arrange- 
ments have authorized us to solicit a copy for the press— 
Your compliance with our request, in this particular, will 
oblige both the public, and 

Your humble servants, 
JOHN STEWARD, -, For Committee of 
SAMUEL ELLIOT J Arrangement. 

John Noyes, Esq. 

Brattlcborough, July 5, 1811. 
Gentlemen, 

I have herewith sent you a copy of my Oration, with- 
out any apology. If its publication is thought to be of any 
use, you are at liberty to publish it. 

Your most obedient servant, 

JOIIX NOYES. 
John Steward, ") - 
Samuel Elliot,/ Esn - rs ' 



AN ORATION, 



>-:-u 



FELLOW CITIZENS, 

<at,on of Prov 1De kcb or mn,^; d ' nar > r dif P e " 
national event, feem s to L VP h OTate fo '"« great 
filings of h Unl an natnre f o ;^ r^™ 1 "!<& 
fcuJar days were contested E facred T"* pir - 
and more fuperftitious times the w • •'" ruder 
anmverfary were blended S. ,. C . >lemn "><s of an 
Ideas and fentiments whiT " hthe " tes of Religion, 
in a political v ewTh'o7e * ' ^ *' ShIy in *reW 
cherift and perpetuate an "ZT* ^-^ " 
delicate and dignified oLafure * l> 2 m ? a . mind f <* a 
&** or 7V, ¥ | tochatt' h e e '; n ar fon'" 7' '", *?* 
the Hero and the Sage ,„ i • S ' to eu 'ogize 

country, and the *3^33*r » <°- of 

PeopJ^nL^The^^^T^ » ™Y 
Or what political era „ Ca " ,nde P e ndence ? 

Fourth of P Jul y Seventel VTT^ than ** 
Six ? *' oevent een Hundred and Seventy 

On that eventful dav were hs i *i ' * 
Of an Empire. By a folemn TlA the foun datio ns 
reprefentatives f [he ° t ™ f d ^ ndid atfof the 
mancipated from wmS, W £ e ° P ' e were *• 
of laws. And in .hi hi X^ a/ ! 1 fS»vernmen 
chains of fupermtion S an V' r r i' and the » " 
which, in a greater „, i„r .7 iur P ed Prerogative 
thraldom thfwWe huife had feft b °-d £ 
der, and the American n; tan]1, y> "we burft a f un . 
t? aft, and to e™" C ' t,2en was Jeft free to think, 



( 4 ) 

In the moment of traverfing the hiftoritf pages 
of the crifis, the foul, impreffed by a tranfacTion fo 
aueuft and fub:ime, is inltantly wafted to region*; 
above its ordinary flights, and while it delights to 
dwell on thefceneinretroi'pect, it hails the returning 
Anniverfary as the jubilee of the nation, to be kept 
by unborn millions for ages yet to come. Other 
great events, iuch as the downfall of empires and 
the overthrow of mighty armies, dwindle, noleism 
the comparifon, than they are difgufting in their na- 
ture. Theie are calculated to aft'ect the mind, with 
little eife than coniiernation and terror ; but, that, 
the Wife and Good, the Pbilofopher and Philanthropist 
of every country could not but view with attoniin- 
ment, admiration, and delight : And the fears they 
loner had entertained for the fate and for the happi- 
nelsof man were loft in exalted hopes, for they 
feem to fee, through the darknefs of the political 
deep, a world of order, fpringing from chaos, and, 
as it was at the birth of time, they fang together 
and fhouted aloud for joy. 

Come, then, let us participate the joy and the 
noble lentiments, naturally excited by a review ot 
the occafiori. The memory of the American Inde- 
pendence can never be loft, nor the monuments, rear- 
ed by the revolution, defaced by lapfe of time, and 
the lamp of our country's patriotifm fhould never 
ceafe to burn. 

While we, this day, draw around the altar of 
Freedom, and call up the recolleaion of the fignal fa- 
vours of Providence, an I the great atclnevements 
which accompanied the druggie for independence, 
may our bofoms overflow with grateful ienfations 
to the munificent Author, of all blcffings, and to thofe 
Patriots and Warriors, by whofe toils, fuffenngs, and 
deaths, were intended to be fecured to us, and to pos- 
terity, the rights and privileges of Freemen. Such 
diumguhW acts of beneficence, and iuch precious 



( 5 ) 

facrifices, call for all our gratitude : And the ir val- 
uable boon, realized in a long leries oi paft prqff eri- 
ty, and in the yet hopeful profpects or our beloved 
country, demands our rejoicing. 

But, in the midft of "fpontaneous mirth" and 
" high pinioned joys," let us not be unmindful that 
we fhould rejoice with lobernefs and trembling. 
Thoughtlefs exultations belong not to man. For if 
profperous days have been multiplied to him, fo alio 
the days of his adveriity may be many. 

All things beneath the fun are permanent in 
nothing, but viciffitude. This is the peculiar char- 
acteriftic of all human projects. They can never 
have the ftamp of perfection, tor they are the work 
of an imperfect hand, and they mult be precarious, 
becaufe their author is perifha blcf. 

The ltrongeft foundations, and the loftieft pil- 
lars are often the mere fport of accident. King- 
doms and Empires pais away, leaving nought be- 
hind, for the contemplation of the hiuYrian and 
moralirt, but a long concatenation of caufes and ef- 
fects, and the floating fragments of the mighty 
wrecks. Our o\v n excellent fyftems of government, 
thofe monuments of human wifdom, and alike the 
Freemen's pride and the Patriot's boaft, and even 
the Independence of our country, that which we all 
fo highly prize, and for which a WASHINGTON 
toiled, and many Heroes bled — ail, all may penfh, 
and be loft forever ! 

Far be it from us to damp the joys of the pref ■ 
ent occafion, by fearful forebodings. Sufficient for 
the day fhould be the evils thereof. But, the 
" figns of the times" are alarming. Ours is an age 
of no common complexion. Dif robed of its milder 
afpects, it has ailumed the ghaflly vifage of defola- 
tions and ruins. The terrible revolutions of falling 



( 6 ) 

States and Empires, which, in other times, would 
have figured in centuries of hiftory, are, of late, 
crowded into a fpace of days ; and each fucceeding 
event feems but a premonition of new catafhophes, 
ftill more frightful than the former. 

When we turn to the political deep, and look 
off, upon the floods, the boldeft courage is difmayed 
at the profpeft. The whole horizon lowers and 
frowns ; and all is night, and tempeft, and wild con- 
fufion. " Wrecks are feen on every billow, and the 
ear is aflailed with the cries of diftrefs, and the 
fhrieks of defpair mingled with the howlings of the 
ftorm." 

The all-inundating deluge of French Revolution 
has already fpread wide its horrors. It feems raft 
covering the face of the whole world, and high rai- 
ting itfelf over the lofty mountains and hills ; and 
one ftrong nation aft- r another, has been plunged 
beneath the defolating element. What portentious 
admonitions thefe, even to thefe United States : " Be 
ye alio ready !" 

If ever the awful day fliould come, when the 
yet furviving powers of Europe, and the eaftern 
world, fhall be engulphed, in the mighty deluge: 
Shall we not be alarmed for the fate of our politi- 
cal Ark? If now, when launched but a little way, 
and only on the borders of the wave, it is well n ^h 
foundered by the whirls of the eddies and the fur<?< s 
of the currents, fliould unfkilful pilots or advcife 
fates ur^e to the midft of the tremendous deep, 
what refuge fhall be fought, or what Ararat could 
I und as a refting place of fafety? Surely the 
crifis is dreadful, even in imagination only — and 
may Heaven, in great mercy, avert it from us. 

, let us forbear to magnify dangers, or dif" 
;e ajuft confidence in the fafety of our coun- 



( 7 ) 

try. The prefent great convulfions of the nations 
are within the control of an Overruling Providence, 
His defigns may be infcrutable, but his bow is in the 
cloud ; and whatever (hall be the afpect of things, 
of our republic, we muft never defpair. It is now 
the lafl: and only furviving one on the face of the 
earth. It ftands a folitary monument — a diftant 
beacon, and a rallying point to oppreffed humanity, 
when in other, and more propitious times, the 
Genius of Liberty Chill refufcitate a general flame, and 
emancipate the world. 

Let us then difpel our fears. Hope is a fweet 
companion, without which, life itfelf would lofe al- 
moft all its charms : And what is innocent in prin- 
ciple, and in its effects it is a duty to indulge. Let 
us participate the delightful pleafure of hoping and 
believing, that whatever difafters other nations may 
be deftined to fuffer, ours will efcape every calamity 
and furvive the general wreck — That our govern- 
ment, our liberties, and our excellent inftitutions 
will all be preferved and remain lading bleffings to 
us and to pofterity. But never can we reafonably 
hope, nor expect, that ill this will be the effect of 
chance. Such great falvation will be the refult of 
fuitable means on the part of our citizens. It will 
depend on great wifdom and virtue, and a general 
diffufion of knowledge. Thefe are the grand pillars, 
the only vital principle of a republican fyftem of 
government, and without which it cannot long en- 
dure. 

The fa&, however, will not be denied, that 
multitudes of other fyftems, where thefe qualities 
were rare, indeed, have neverthelefs prolonged an 
exiftence for ages. But, let it be remembered, that 
thofe governments differed effentially from our.;, in 
their nature and forms, and in the principles of fup- 
port on which they relied. 
B 



( 8 ) 

Wherever the human mind acquires an artifi- 
cial elevation by chivalrous ideas and fentiments, 
or is funk below its level by ignorance and fuperfti- 
tion, obedience is the refult of falfe principles or hon- 
our, or of a mere brutal fervility- And if, in con- 
nection with fuch influences on the paflions of men, 
be added the mighty machinery of the military pow- 
er, to ilrike terror and awe, the thrones of the Neros 
and Napoleons, of every age, are fixed on a durable 
baiis, fcarcely liable to be overturned by domeftic vi- 
olence, and generally continuing, until a weaker is 
overwhelmed by the power of a ftronger. 

How very different are the principles and mo- 
tives which are neceffary to the fupport of a repub- 
lican government ? Such a political fyftem, grow- 
ing out of general confent, and deriving all its en- 
ergies from public opinion diidains both the ufe and 
the influence of fuperftition and ignorance — the pa- 
geant decorations of Majefty, and the glittering ar- 
ray of arms, to give itrength to its frame, or activ- 
ity to its functions. Thefe appendages are noxious 
accompaniments, like deformities and morbid affec- 
tions in the human body, never beneficial, and al- 
ways deftructive to its health and vigour. But, 
having its origin in reafon and the nature of man, 
and inftituted folely for the public weal, a genuine 
republic finds the cement of its bafis, and its firing 
ligatures, in enlightened underftandings and moral 
difpofiiions Here are lodged the Jiamina of the 
fyftem, and the bones and finews of its itrength ; 
and could thefe be prelerved they would give per- 
petuity to its duration. 

The calamities to which all other governments 
are liable from without, may be common to this. 
It may be menaced and aflaiied with the fcour^es of 
foreign war, and have to meet, in arms, whole ncfts 
of myrmidons and conferipts ; but infinitely lefs 
would be the danger from thefe, than from a gene- 



( 9 ) 

ral prevalence of ignorance and corruption of mor- 
als. Thefe are the breach in the walls, expofing to 
every attack — The great flood-gate, through which, 
infidioufly enter, inordinate ambition, party fpirit, dif- 
cord and treafon — the fatal gangrenes of all republics. 

To caufes like thefe may be traced the downfall 
of the ancient fyftems of Greece and Rome. So 
long as the great body of their citizens continued to 
be fober, wife and virtuous, thofe governments ex- 
celled in profperity and ftrength ; and the luftre of 
their fame was brightened no lefs by their works of 
genius than by the prowefs of their arms. But 
when a declension in morals let loofe the wicked 
and boifterous passions, credulity, always the natural 
offspring of ignoi ance, gave opportunities to dema- 
gogues to deceive and miilead the people in the great 
concerns of the State, the foundations of the repub- 
lics were undermined, and their fall was inevitable. 
The admonitions and exertions of only a few wife 
and virtuous citizens could not fave them from def- 
truclion — becaufe the people themfelves, at length, 
become profligate in fentiments and conduct, and 
ftupid as to their true interefts, would not be dissua- 
ded from liftening to the finifter and dv lufive vaga- 
ries of felf-ilyled patriots, initead of correct political 
principles, and from preferring the gratification of 
their fordid passions to the good of their country. 

How monitory the leflon to be drawn from 
thofe celebrated nations, and, if properly confidered, 
will it not produce ferious and gloomy apprehen* 
sions in us, and in all our citizens ? 

The American Republic, at prefent, is threat- 
ened with great mifchief, if not ruin, from the fame 
fources we have defcribed ; and the dangers to 
which it is expofed, are no lefs now, than in the 
days of the ancient republics, but greatly augment- 



C 10 ) 

ed by circumftances peculiar to the times in which 
we live. There has, of late, gone forth into the 
world, a fpirit, extraordinary in the fuhtilty and ac- 
tivity of its power, and zfui generis in kind. Its 
very nature is to pluck up and to ruin — to revolu- 
tionize and deftroy. And the wayward and per- 
verfe difpofitions of men, not fatisfied with their 
own ftrong natural propeniities to mifrule and dis- 
order, have taken into their fervice this new and for- 
eign aid, as if to make depravity itfelf dill more de- 
praved. 

In that country where were feen the firft foot- 
fteps of its marches, it proved to be the Bohon Upas 
to all that is great and good, in principle ana in 
practice. The confolations of religion and virtue, 
- ad the wife and immemorial maxims of morals and 
politics expired by its poifon. It went far in revo- 
lutionizing the nature of man, by ftripping it, of all 
its amiable qualities, and leaving nothing behind but 
a favage heart and brutal propenfities. With the 
honied words of Liberty and Equality on its lips, it 
rivetted anew and made ftronger the ihackles of 
Qavery — mixed a keener poignancy in the already 
bitter cup of Suffering humanity, and, to ufe the lan- 
guage of a humane and feeling writer, " left its 
deluded victims to enjoy no other than the liberties 
of hell. " 

Such are fome of the features of the character 
of this great Apollyon, who did more in Subjugating 
and ruining the ill-fated governments of Europe,. 
than all the armies of the terrible nation, and who 
has, long fmce, perched upon our fhores, {heeding 
forth its baleful influences, and carrying on its lcthi- 
ii-rous work. The eflects of its labours are feen, in 
the opinions, the difpofitions and the conduct of 
multitudes of our citizens, and even in the great 
councils of our country. Men are made to regard 



( » ) 

perverfity of principle, and obliquity of fentiment 
as the faireft paffports to reputation and fuffrage — 

I to affume for argument, proportions palpably abiurd 
and contradictory — to fear dangers, that no where 
cxift, " and to fee what never can be feen." 

To change, to new-model, and to pull down 
every thing, venerable by age or fanctioned by time, 
is the order of the day with its votaries. The fa- 
cred dictates of infpiration are rules of life too old 
or too rigid for the refined philofophy of the day. — 
Hence, blow after blow has been ilruck at the infti- 
tutions of religion and morals, and thus, through 
them, at the only foundations of civil fociety. By 
the inftigations of this fpirit, the politics of our coun- 
try have been metamorphofed into a new and ex- 
traordinary kind of beings — difdaining to travel the 
old, and well-beaten paths of wifdom and experience, 
they are perched upon the cerial car of the balloon^ 
without a compafs or ftar for a guide, or a chart by 
which to direct their courfe ; and while aiming to 
injure fancied or pretended enemies, they have com- 
mitted fuicide upon themfelves, and deftroyed the 
profperity of the nation. — And even now, this fame 
malignant demon feems to be in the laft act of pre- 
paring to immolate the peace, the liberty, and the in- 
dependence of our country upon its own unhallow- 
ed altars, and then to triumph over the ruins, and 
the horrors it has produced. 

What American Hercules mall arife to flay the 
hideous monfter ? or what antidote can be found for 
the poifon of its flings ? 

Wifdom and virtue in all-confoling accents re- 
ply, Your fafety is in us— In us there is more than 
Herculean ftrength — In us there is a panacea for 
your maladies, and a " balm for all your wounds" 



( 12 ) 

By controling and fubduing the unruly paflions, 
and giving light to the underitandings of men, we 
transform the rude, the ignorant, the vicious and 
the vile, into well-informed, quiet, and peaceable 
citizens. Hence the all-deftroying blafts of ambi- 
' ion, and party animofity ceafe. Vice and ignorance 
are no where to be feen. Talents and merit afcend 
to their ftations in the private circles of fociety, and 
in the public councils of the nation. And thus the 
government itfelf being free from every evil and 
danger from within,digs deep its foundations, makes 
ftrong its pillars, and places its munitions in the 
rocks . 

Go then, my friends, and in the fecret places 
of your retirements, commune with your own 
hearts, and be wife. Suffer no bitternefs of party 
rancour nor pertinacity of will to blind you, as to 
the true and folid interefts of fociety. Banifh from 
your breafts the ragings of ambition, and that inor- 
dinate love of pelf and power which frequently 
make men fwerve from the ftraight path of duty : 
And, as you value your country — the birth-place 
of your fathers, your own, and the future refidence 
of your offspring : As you prize its independence, 
its government, and its invaluable inftitutions — and 
as you regard the welfare, and the happinefs of your- 
felves and your children ...So let your care and en- 
deavours be to inculcate wifdom and virtue. Take 
faff hold of their inffructions, and liften to their pre- 
cepts. Practife them, yourfelves, on all occafions 
and in every fituation. Teach them to your chil- 
dren, your neighbours, and to all around you, and 
if you have fhared liberally in the gifts of fortune, 
be not backward in aiding thofe eilablifhrnents and 
iniUtutions, which are calculated to improve the 
religion, the morals, the virtue and the knowledge 
of our citizens. Do thcfe things and you will yet 
.. ive your country, prolong its profperity and hap- 



( 13 ) 

pinefs, artd receive the benedictions of all pofterity. 
Do thefe things with proper views and motives, and 
you will have difcharged an important duty to 
yourfelves, and to that BEING, in whofe hands are 
the deftinies of all nations and empires, whofe King* 
dom is an everlajling Kingdom^ and whofe dominion is 
forever and ever. 




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